The present invention relates to a vacuum bag having a self-sealing collar, and more particularly to such a bag wherein the collar is also self-aligning with a dirty air inlet of a vacuum device so as to facilitate blind placement of the collar on the vacuum inlet.
Vacuum devices may be divided generally into two types: the dirty air type and the clean air type. In terms of the travel path of the air through the vacuum device, in the dirty air type the vacuum-generating motor is disposed between the dirty air vacuum inlet and the vacuum bag, while in the clean air type, the dirty air vacuum inlet communicates directly with the vacuum bag and the vacuum-generating motor is disposed after the vacuum bag. Vacuum devices generally come in two styles: an upright style which has a long handle for moving the entire vacuum device backwards and forwards therewith as a unit, and a canister style which has a long handle that is attached by a flexible base to a rolling or sliding canister seated on the floor and is movable to a limited extent without movement of the canister. Generally, upright models are of the dirty air type, while canister models are of the clean air type. More recently, however, there are upright models of the clean air type of vacuum device, and these have presented special problems in mounting of a self-sealing vacuum bag on the dirty air inlet of the vacuum device.
While the present invention is especially designed to solve this problem which arises especially in an upright model of the clean air type, the vacuum bag of the present invention is in fact useful with both the upright and canister models, regardless of whether they are of the clean or dirty air type.
Referring now to FIGS. 1-3, therein illustrated is a conventional self-sealing disposable vacuum bag, generally designated by the reference numeral 10. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the bag 10 is shown being mounted on a conventional upright model vacuum device of the clean air type, generally designated 12. The vacuum device 12 has a dirty air inlet 14 in direct communication with the bag 10, a downstream motor 16 for creating a vacuum within the chamber 18 about the bag 10 when the chamber is closed, and a handle 19. The bag 10 as illustrated in phantom line in FIG. 1 in its mounted position. The illustrated vacuum device 12 is an upright model of the clean air type wherein the dirty air from the vacuum inlet 14 must pass through the bag 20 (and thus be cleaned) before it is drawn into the motor 16.
The bag 10 comprises porous bag means 20 for trapping dirt, dust and particles in the dirty air stream exiting dirty air vacuum inlet 14 while allowing air (presumably clean air) to pass therethrough under the influence of a vacuum thereabout created by motor 16. The bag means 20 defines a bag interior 22 and a channel 24 through the bag means 20 into the bag interior 22.
The bag 10 additionally includes a self-sealing collar, generally designated 30. The collar 30 is secured to the bag means 20 (typically by adhesive) and communicates with the bag interior 22 via the channel 24. The self-sealing collar 30 is similar to a conventional non-self-sealing collar in that it includes an adhesively bonded pair of parallel planar panels 32, 34 defining aligned respective circular apertures 36, 38 therethrough. The inner panel 32 is typically secured directly to the bag means 20 with its respective panel aperture 36 aligned with the channel 24. The outer panel 34 defines a respective panel aperture 38, which is typically the same size (i.e., diameter) and aligned with the panel aperture 36. Both of the aligned panel apertures 36, 38 are configured and dimensioned for receipt of a dirty air inlet 14 therethrough, thereby to establish communication between the dirty air inlet 14 and the bag interior 22 via the channel 24. A resilient membrane 40, typically formed of rubber, is disposed intermediate the pair of panels 32, 34 and extends across panel apertures 36, 38. The membrane 40 defines an aperture 42 therethrough aligned with but smaller than (i.e., of lesser diameter than) the panel apertures 36, 38. Typically, the peripheral edge or margin of the membrane 40 is adhesively bonded to the adjacent surfaces of the panels 32, 34.
The vacuum bag 10 as described hereinabove is not self-sealing, but it is self-aligning in that the user can grasp the collar 30 with the outer panel 34 facing the inlet 14 of the vacuum device and bearing thereagainst. The user then simply moves the bag around until the dirty air inlet 14 enters the panel aperture 38 of the outer panel 34 and further movement of the collar 30 relative to the inlet 14 is blocked. At this point, the user manually presses the bag harder against the inlet 14 until the inlet 14 expands the membrane aperture 42 and then passes therethrough and through the inner panel aperture 36 and channel 24, thus establishing communication with the bag interior 22.
The aforedescribed non-self-sealing bag is converted to a self-sealing bag by the inclusion in the outer panel 34 of at least one finger 50, and preferably two fingers 50, 52 as illustrated. The fingers 50, 52 are integral with and formed of the same somewhat rigid material (e.g., cardboard or paperboard) as the outer panel 34, but each finger is pivotable relative to the plane of the outer panel 34 about the juncture of the outer panel 34 and the respective finger. The finger(s) 50, 52 extend inwardly in the plane of the outer panel 34 at least partially across the respective outer panel aperture 38 and collectively fully across the membrane aperture 42 prior to placement of the collar 30 on the dirty air vacuum inlet 14, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3.
When the collar 30 is then disposed on a vacuum inlet 14, the vacuum inlet 14 forces the finger(s) 50, 52 through the membrane aperture 42 and the inner panel aperture 38. In this position, the finger(s) 50, 52 do not interfere with the transmission of dirty air from the vacuum inlet 14 into the bag interior 22. Later, when the collar 30 is removed from the vacuum inlet 14, the finger(s) 50, 52 extend substantially parallel to and partially behind the membrane 40 and across the membrane aperture 42 to effectively close the membrane aperture 42 and thus the bag 10. As the collar 30 is being removed from the inlet 14, the membrane 40 is biased to return to its original planar configuration with a membrane aperture 42 of substantially lesser diameter than the vacuum inlet 14. The finger(s) 50, 52 are sufficiently long that they come into contact with the back of portions of the membrane 40 on either side of the membrane aperture 42 and force such portions forwardly. The finger(s) 50, 52 are of sufficient length and width that, when they assume an almost planar orientation after the bag 10 is removed from the inlet 14, the finger 50 extends across and blocks the membrane aperture 42 (or the fingers 50, 52 collectively extend across and block the membrane aperture 42).
The price paid for the addition of the finger(s) 50, 52 or any equivalent means extending in the plane of and at least partially across the outer panel aperture 38 is the loss of the self-aligning feature. Thus, when the user (illustrated in phantom line in FIG. 1) attempts to blindly place the bag collar on the inlet 14, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the inlet 14 cannot enter the outer panel aperture 38 but is blocked by the presence of the finger(s) 50, 52 extending substantially across and in the plane of the aperture 38. Accordingly, the user cannot tell when the outer panel aperture 38 is aligned with the vacuum inlet 14. If the user pushes the collar 30 onto the inlet 14 when the collar 30 is not properly positioned (i.e., when the outer panel aperture 38 is not aligned with the vacuum inlet 14), the paperboard panels 32, 34 may become deformed, thereby jeopardizing efficient operation of the bag 10.
As a result, typically vacuum bag 10 is not used with the illustrated vacuum machine 12. In fact, vacuum bag 10 has been typically used in cannister models where the vacuum device itself includes a self-aligning feature, typically a frame in the vacuum device that receives and holds the perimeter of the vacuum bag in an appropriate position for entry of the vacuum inlet.
While there exists self-sealing vacuum bag mechanisms which do not employ a finger(s) extending in the plane of and at least partially across the outer panel aperture, these alternative self-sealing mechanisms have not found the wide acceptability of the finger mechanisms described above.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum bag having a self-sealing and self-aligning collar.
Another object is to provide such a vacuum bag which employs finger means extending in the plane of and at least partially across a panel aperture for blocking the membrane aperture.
A further object is to provide such a vacuum bag which facilitates blind placement of the collar on a vacuum inlet, especially the vacuum inlet of an upright model of a clean air type of vacuum device.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide such a bag which is simple and economical to manufacture.